Amidst opposition allegations of “vote theft” and heated debates in Parliament over voter roll revisions in Bihar, the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a petition that had questioned the validity of the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections.
The petition, filed by Chetan Chandrakant Ahire, alleged that nearly 75 lakh bogus votes were cast after the 6 pm polling deadline. Ahire also claimed serious discrepancies across 95 constituencies, where, according to him, the number of votes polled and counted did not match.
A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and NK Singh took up the matter, but refused to intervene, noting that the Bombay High Court had already dismissed the plea in June.
Back in June, the Bombay High Court had strongly criticised the petition, describing it as “absolutely baseless” and a “gross abuse of the process of law.” The High Court had observed that the plea had wasted the court’s entire day of proceedings, remarking:
“The whole day of this court was wasted while hearing this petition. We were of the view that costs should be imposed on them but we refrain from doing so.”
The petitioner, dissatisfied with this ruling, had escalated the matter to the Supreme Court.
The issue of alleged bogus voting has been a recurring flashpoint in national politics. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has repeatedly accused the BJP-led government of indulging in “vote chori,” most recently raising allegations in an assembly segment during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka.
In Maharashtra, too, opposition parties claimed that electoral malpractices had taken place, even as the Mahayuti alliance led by the BJP secured a sweeping mandate. Following the victory, Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as Chief Minister, reinforcing the BJP’s stronghold in the state.
On August 18, at a press conference, Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of “silence” on discrepancies in Maharashtra’s voter rolls. He also flagged alleged irregularities in voter additions in Mahadevapura, an assembly segment under Bangalore Central Lok Sabha constituency, and criticised the deletion of video data.
The Election Commission, in its recent statements, has maintained that parties should raise objections to voter roll errors during the official claims and objections period. It has rejected the opposition’s charge of deliberate inaction, stating that electoral processes have adequate safeguards.
With the Supreme Court’s dismissal, the matter has effectively been closed at the highest judicial level, reaffirming the Bombay High Court’s earlier stance.
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